Chaos
by BeyondBelief01
Summary: When Emma saw the little tiny scratch on her wooden front door she knew something was wrong...


**Chaos**

**Don't worry! I'll be writing on Bad Case of Loving You after this fic. This is going to be a one shot, because I felt like I needed to take a bit of a distance from my other fic and this plot bunny had been eating my brains for days. Then I finally decided to write it down.**

Warning: this fic is kinda angsty, it's not really romantic in any way. But I needed to write something angsty with all the stuff that's been happening in my life lately.

I'm also aware that the description of the situation isn't quite realistic, but I don't have a lot of experience with this kind of situations. In my mind, this fic was set between Matress and Sectionals. So the kiss hasn't happened yet, but Will knows about baby!gate.

**  
Also****, kudos to Bella, who proof read this fic for me! This story would be way worse without your mad skills, thanks! :D**

When Emma saw the little tiny scratch on her wooden front door she knew something was wrong.

That scratch hadn't been there that morning. She was sure of that, because she knew all the details of her house. Like they were pictures in her head. She blinked twice, maybe she had been mistaken. She shook her head. Sure, she was a human being and she could make mistakes, but this time she was sure she wasn't wrong.

She decided that it was better to ignore it and she unlocked the door as usual. If there was something wrong, she'd find out anyway.

She had just closed the door behind her back when she saw the faint smudge on the light blue wall of her hallway. She gasped. She had been right: there was something _so_ wrong here. She took off her coat and her shoes and made her way to the living room. 

When she stepped into her living room, she dropped her purse and her heart almost stopped beating. She gasped loudly, because what she saw there was something she had hoped she'd never see in her entire life.

It was a chaos. A complete chaos.

She stared in shock, her eyes wide open and she didn't even bother to cover her gaping mouth. She was just standing there, frozen. What she was seeing, was one of her worst nightmares. Her house looked like a battlefield.

Almost all her books, once neatly arranged in the bookshelf, had been spread across the floor, some pages were even ripped out. The vase with tulips that had been on the table was now shattered. The fragments were on the floor and the water had made a dark stain on the rug. The cushions from her couch had been dropped on the floor and to her utter shock, her family pictures had been taken of the wall and they were nowhere to be found.

When she turned around, she saw that there was something huge missing: her television.

She covered her mouth. Now she was sure there had been burglars in her house. She had already been suspecting that, but this was a confirmation of her fears.

She needed to check the other rooms.

Emma almost _ran_ to her bedroom, moving as quick as possible.

The thought that unknown people had been in her house made her brain go into panic mode. She had a hard time keeping herself from hyperventilating. She knew what this meant: her house had been contaminated by strangers. This was wrong on so many levels!

"Oh gosh, no, no," she muttered when she saw what the strangers had done to her bedroom.

They had rummaged around in her closet and in her nightstand. Clothes were lying on the floor and on her bed. She looked into the drawer of her nightstand and gasped again; they had taken her jewelry. All of it.

She flung to her forhead, she felt a headache coming up.

"The kitchen, I need to check the kitchen," she told herself and she moved to the kitchen, expecting the worst.

She was right.

They had taken all of her antique forks and knives. Even though she didn't use them regularly, they were worth a lot of money. She had no idea what else they had taken, because she didn't dare to look.

"Ohhhhh God," she groaned, "Why? Why me?"

She walked back to the hallway, the only place that hadn't been ruined. She did the first thing that came to her mind: she grabbed her cell phone. She wasn't going to call the police. No, she was going to call Will.

Even though his number was under speed dial, it took her a long time to hit the right buttons. Her hands were shaking uncontrollably. Adrenaline was coarsing through her veins and she had a strange feeling in her head, like it was stuffed with cotton wool. She was too shocked to cry, even though she really, really wanted to cry at that moment.

When her fingers had finally found the right buttons, she dialed the number.

"Please, Will, please pick up the phone," she muttered.

She heard his voice and she let out a heavy sigh that she didn't even know she'd been holding back. For a few seconds, she found herself unable to talk.

"Hello?" she heard him say.

"Oh gosh, Will," she choked out, "I'm so, so glad you picked up the phone ...it's everything...everything is...wrong...they...they have taken all my stuff...it's...it's...wrong..." she stopped, the tears suddenly filling her eyes and her it felt like her breath was caught in her throat.

"Emma? Are you okay?"

"N-no, Will, I'm not okay," she said, her voice thick with emotion. She could no longer handle this.

She turned to stare to the smudge on wall in front of her. The smudge that had been left by the intruder, the crazy person that had entered her house.

Suddenly, her legs were no longer able to support her. She slid down on the ground, her back against the wall. The tears filled her cheeks, smudging her make up and leaving wet trails on her face. She was now sobbing, her shoulders shaking while she was still clutching the phone to her ear.

"Emma? Emma!" his voice brought her back into reality for a bit, "You need to try to stay calm, I can't understand you like this. Stay calm, Em. Breath in, breath out," he said softly, but she could hear the nervous edge in his voice.

She tried to take a deep breath, but she failed, her breathing had become ragged. She tried again. This time she actually came to her senses. She took a very deep breath and talked into the phone.

"There have been people here and they've made...they've made...oh gosh," she said, her voice was trembling so hard that she was afraid he couldn't hear what she said.

"Try to stay calm and tell me what happened," he replied.

"They...I don't know who, but...they have been here...they've taken everything..." she said. She had stopped sobbing but her voice was still very shaky.

"You mean, there have been burglars in your house?"

"Y-y-yes...," she stuttered, "oh Will, they have made such a mess...such a mess, it's horrible," she tried to contol her breath, but she couldn't and her eyes filled with tears again when she thought about the state of her living room, her bedroom and all the other rooms.

"Emma, listen to me, you don't have to talk, just listen," he said, "you need to call the police. There have been burglars in your house. I don't know what they have taken, but the fact that they have taken things is serious enough to contact the police."

"I don't...I can't, Will," she said with a shaky voice, "I don't want any more strangers in my house, I can't handle that."

There was a short moment of silence on the other side.

"Will? Are you still there?" Emma asked.

"Yes, sorry, hold on. I'll...I'll be on my way. I'm coming to your place right now. We'll do this together, if you're okay with that," he said and Emma nodded even though she knew he couldn't see that.

"Okay," she muttured.

"Oh and Em?"

"Yes?"

"I know you want to clean things up, but promise me not to touch anything, okay?"

She took a deep breath. This was going to be hard, but she could do this. Her properties were now evidence and it was important not to touch anything.

"I promise," she said eventually.

"Good. Stay where you are. I'm coming your way."

"I'll stay, just stay," she muttered, more to herself than to Will, and hung up the phone.

Emma was still sitting on the floor, staring at the wall in front of her. More spilled from her eyes, blurring her vision. She shook her head in frustration. Why did this have to happen to her of all people? What did she ever do wrong to deserve this?

After a few minutes she mentally ordered herself to stop crying, knowing she couldn't let Will see her like this. She rose to her feet, one hand resting on the wall. She looked into the mirror. She was shocked by her own appearce.

Her make up had been smudged and her eyes were puffy and red. Her hair was tousled from resting against the wall. She looked terrible.

She had to get decent, Will could be at her house any minute and she didn't want to face him like this.

Of course she wasn't so fortunate.

Just as she reached for a swab to remove the black streaks, the doorbell rang. She panicked momentarily wanting to clean herself up, but her exhausted, frantic state took over and she went to open the door.

Emma swung open the door to a very concerned Will and regretted doing nothing for her own reckless self.

"Hi..." she said softly and looked down at her toes. She was embarrassed and while Will was the only person she thought to call, she hated him seeing her like this. Emma was never a person to cry in front of others, she liked to think being a counselor meant having your own issues together so you could focus on others. This time however, she was struggling to hide it.

"Hi," he replied, looking caught off guard. He'd never seen Emma so unguarded and vulnerable.

Emma looked up into his eyes and found compassion and sympathy. It was the last straw that broke the camel's back. She couldn't hold back any longer.

She collapsed against his chest, sobbing audibly. For once, she was being selfish and she just wanted a shoulder (or chest) to cry on. She didn't care about germs or about smudging Will's jacket with mascara. She hated to be the damsel in distress, but this time there was no denying that she actually acted like one.

"Oh Em, what did they do to you?" he whispered into her hair, gently rubbing her back.

"It's just...it's so un-unfair!" she sobbed.

"I know, I know," he said, and he kept caressing her until the whimpers subsided.

"I'm so sorry Will, I should..." she let out one last sob, "I should get my act together. I'm uhm, I'm sorry for your jacket, I could uhm, clean it if you want me to."

"It's okay, Emma. Just relax. I understand why you're upset," he said when she let go of him.

"You don't," she said, "you haven't seen what my apartment looks like. It's like there's been an earthquake. A very nasty earthquake that stole my things," she continued, and despite herself she let out a small chuckle. Will chuckled too and although he tried really hard not to let it happen, his chuckle developed in a laugh.

"Sorry, I just...well, nevermind," he said, "uhm, maybe it's better to call the police," Emma shook her head quickly when she heard what he said, "no excuses, Emma. Look, I know you don't want more people in your house and I understand that, but it has to happen, and you know that too. This won't solve itself."

She swallowed, "...m-maybe you're right."

"That's why I'm here, I'm here to help you. We're doing this together," he told her and she nodded. "I'm just glad you're safe." Emma smiled and agreed something had to be done. She wouldn't rest until she knew who did this to her and her apartment.

"Let's go inside," she said. She knew it was better not to stay in a house where burglars had been, but there was no way she was doing this outside. Her home was her safe haven, even though it had been contaminated. Of all places in the world, her house was the place she felt most comfortable and secure.

For once she didn't mind that someone entering her house didn't take off their shoes. The damage of foot tracking's everywhere had already been done today.

They sat down at the kitchen table and normally Emma would offer her guests something to drink but she was not in her functioning state today.

Her phone was lying on the table. They both stared at it.

"Are you ready?" he asked her and she took a deep breath.

"Yes, yes, I'm ready," she said and she reached for the phone.

"You can do this. Remember, I'm here," he hesitated to grab her hand but decided against it.

She sighed and gathered all her courage to call 911. She dialed the number and waited a moment with shaky breaths.

"Hello," she said and her throat felt like it was closing up.

Will instinctively reached across the table and took her hand that wasn't holding the phone in his. To her own surprise she didn't withdraw her hand, but she squeezed his and he squeezed back.

The emergency dispatcher asked for her name and why she was calling.

"My name is Emma Pillsbury and I'm calling because there have been burglars in my house," she said. She finally calmed down and talking become easier as she told them what had happened. The woman on the phone had a kind voice and tried to help as much as she could. Emma's voice trembled as she gave them her address and more information on the situation but she tried to stay as calm as she could.

Will didn't let of her hand go until she had finished the call.

"And?" he asked.

"They're going to start an investigation...they're coming," she said as her chin trembled, but she bit her bottom lip to fight the tears from coming again. She took a deep, steady breath.

Why was she being so emotional about this? It was no big deal... She'd get to clean everything after. And by everything, she imagined every square inch of her apartment. Everything needed to be bleached and wiped down.

"They'll be here within half an hour. I'm not supposed to touch anything, but I'm going to the bathroom anyway...to um, to get decent," she said.

Will nodded, "I'll just stay here."

Walking back to the bathroom with clenched fists she avoided touching anything around her. She fixed her hair and washed her face thoroughly so all the make up stains were gone. Then she redid her make up. For once, she put her hair in a ponytail.

In the end, she looked like nothing had happened and she went back to join Will at the table.

"All decent," she stated as she sat down.

"I see," Will said and she couldn't help noticing he was giving her a once over. His eyes lingered as he stared at her hair, he had never seen her hair like this. Her ponytail bobbed as she moved her head.

Emma noticed that he was checking her out. It made her a bit uncomfortable. This was not the right time to flirt, but it was Will and her cheeks inevitably turned red.

The doorbell rang. It sounded awfully cliché in her head, but she was saved by the bell.

"Gosh that's quick," Emma gasped and she got to her feet.

"Remember to stay calm, you can do this," Will reassured her.

She walked to the front door and she let out one self-assuring nod before she opened it.

"Hi," she said to the three men who were standing there. Two of them were carrying an investigation kit. She let them in. She looked alarmed when one of the men wanted to introduce himself by offering his hand. She didn't shake it and she knew it looked very rude, but she didn't care. She heard footsteps in the hallway, but she didn't turn away from the police officers.

"I think it's better if we go away for a while," Will whispered in her ear from behind and she almost jumped. She hadn't expected him to be so close. His breath tickled her skin like the time he had asked her if she could keep a secret.

"I don't think you need us here, do you?" she asked the men.

"Actually, I need to talk to you," the shortest man said, "for the investigation."

Emma sighed. Of course, how could she be so naive?

She nodded, "If I really have to..."

"I need to take your fingerprints, to exclude yours from the ones we find," the man explained.

She nodded again, "Follow me to the kitchen and we can sit down there."

The men, including Will, followed her and two of the three police men started their investigation, one started in the living room, the other one went into her bedroom.

The other man took her fingerprints, which took some time because everytime she had to touch the inkpad, she withdrew her fingers at the last moment. The man became impatient after a while and Emma became frustrated. At least until Will, who was standing next to her, put his hand on her shoulder. She looked at him for a moment and he nodded. For some reason Will made everything easier, because now she was able to put her fingers onto the inkpad without hestitating too much. He was her only true form of comfort.

When Emma had finished with the officers, she let out a sigh of relief. She immediately washed her hands until every trace of the ink was gone, even though she wasn't supposed to use the sink.

She waited...and waited. The invesigation took longer than she expected but in the end, when Emma was tired and hungry and desperately wanted to clean things up, the men came back and told her they were done. She showed them the way out of her apartment.

When the last man had left her apartment, Emma closed the door and sighed. She turned around. Will was standing there, putting on his jacket. He looked at her and when he was ready to go, he did a step closer to her. He wanted to touch her shoulder but he retrieved his arm. She raised an eyebrow. Somewhere she thought it was funny that he didn't touch her, although she thought she had proven that with him, she didn't care. He saw her raised eyebrows and wanted to touch her shoulder again, and this time he actually touched her. She smiled.

"I'm proud of you, Em," Will said in all honesty.

"Why?" she asked, "I haven't really done anything besides crying a-and—"

Will cut her off and put his finger lightly to her lips before pulling it away quickly.

"You've done the right thing," he said and she smiled, "So, uhm, I should be going. Not that I don't like... being around you, but I'll, um, leave you alone so you can clean things up."

She nodded and smiled. Emma wanted him to stay with her but she knew that it wasn't necessary and she needed to clean on her own to fully feel safe and restored.

"It's going to cost a lot of time, I'm afraid."

"Don't worry, you'll get through this, you can do it,"

Before she opened the door, she faced him again for one last time.

"Thanks Will, thanks a lot," she said.

"It's nothing. This is what friends do for each other," he said and she tried to hide the fact that her heart sunk in disappointment by that comment. She shrugged and smiled, desperately hoping it wouldn't look too fake.

"Of course," she said, a little voice in the back of her mind told her that he hadn't meant that, they weren't _just friends_, but a stronger voice took over and told her that it was exactly what they were.

She opened the door and Will stepped outside.

"See you on Monday," he said, "bye, Em!"

"Bye!" she said and she closed the door.

She turned around and rubbed here hands together. She had no idea where to even begin. This was going to be a tough job, but she knew she was capable of doing this.

Will had said she could do this, so she could.


End file.
